POP:
Hello, Dyanne can you start by telling us a little bit about you and your band.
Dyanne Potter:
Sure! Jan Christiana and I have two bands, Potter’s Daughter, and Octarine Sky. I play piano, keyboards, and sing. Jan plays bass, (and several other instruments), sings, and arranges and produces our music.
POP:
How did the band name come about and what’s its significance.
Dyanne Potter:
I actually started using the name Potter’s Daughter back in NYC after I graduated from the Manhattan School of Music. We played around NYC and in Northeastern Pennsylvania, where I grew up.
My maiden name is Potter – I got the idea for the band name one night when I was playing piano at the Elmhurst Country Club, where both my parents were members. Several of my Dad’s friends came up to me at the piano and asked me if I was Potter’s daughter. And the name was born! I just like the sound of it.
POP:
How long have you been a musician?
Dyanne Potter:
I started taking piano lessons when I was three years old. I come from a musical family and everyone plays an instrument. It just seemed natural to play the piano. I performed the first time at age four. My piano teacher, Anne Vanko Liva, used to give Piano Pedagogy master classes all over the country and often invited me to perform at the master classes and recitals.
POP:
You are both a singer and a pianist are you classically trained or self-taught
Dyanne Potter:
I am definitely a classically trained pianist; I have two degrees in classical piano performance. I have spent many hours practicing!! Although I have also studied jazz (with the master, Mike Longo), I don’t really consider myself a jazz pianist.
I have also studied voice, but far less formally. I am currently studying with the fabulous Edrie Means Weekly.
POP:
How would you describe your style?
Dyanne Potter:
My style is certainly rooted in classical music, probably 20th century and 21st century “classical” music. I also love improvisation though, and Jan (Christiana) is such a great soloist, we always build room into the form for solos.
POP:
When did you realize that you wanted to be a musician and who was it that inspired you to become a musician?
Dyanne Potter:
I took being a musician for granted when I was a child. I didn’t think I wanted to be a musician professionally. But then I joined my first band when I was 16 years old, and I loved it so much, it changed my entire life.
POP:
You recently self-released an album under the name Octarine Sky can you tell us about that album and how it came about
Dyanne Potter:
We originally planned the album to be released under the name Potter’s Daughter. But as Jan and I started working on it and arranging the songs, we realized just how demanding the songs would be for a drummer. Not just technically challenging, but challenging to come up with drum parts which would fit, especially for the songs, “One” and “VII”. On a whim, Jan and I reached out to Simon Phillips, sent him some work recordings of the songs, and asked him if he would ever consider recording drum parts. You can imagine our astonishment when he said, yes!!
Then we asked Guthrie Govan to play guitar on the album, and he, too, said yes!! We are still so honoured to have both of these amazing musicians on our album!!
We realized just how different this sound was than anything we had ever done with Potter’s Daughter. So, we decided to separate the two projects, keeping Potter’s Daughter for the more acoustic, semi-acoustic, folky things we compose, and Octarine Sky for the heavier music.
POP:
How does Octarine Sky differ from the Potter’s Daughter releases?
Dyanne Potter:
The Octarine Sky arrangements are much more complex and orchestrated. And again, the overall sound is much heavier.
POP:
We hear you have been invited to play at the 2022 NJ Proghouse Summer Day Camp can you tell us what that is.
Dyanne Potter:
Yes!! It will be a fun summer day, Saturday August 6th, and filled with some really wonderful music! All the bands will be performing semi-acoustic – pared down versions of their usual set ups. No drum sets – just percussion. It will be held outside at Camp Oak Spring in Somerset, NJ. So everyone should bring camping chairs, pop-ups, coolers etc. There will be food offered at the venue.
POP:
This year features a great lineup including Molesome (Mattias Olsson, Neon Tiger), Schooltree, Ryche Chlanda (Fire Ballet, Nektar) Kendal Scott (Nektar) and Simon Godfrey ( Shineback, Tinyfish, Valdez) have you ever performed with any of these artists?
No, I have never performed with any of them. I am very much looking forward to hearing each of them!!
POP:
You will have some special guests at the upcoming NJ Proghouse Summer Day Camp who are they and how did they come about?
Dyanne Potter:
Yes, we are thrilled and honored to again play with the drummer, Mark DeGregory, from the band Orpheus Nine. We played both ProgStock and Prog on the Ranch with Mark last year. This will be the first time playing with him on percussion.
We will also be joined by the vocalist Rose Danese, whom we met at Prog on the Ranch. She will be singing with me on two songs, one new song from our upcoming Potter’s Daughter EP, “Weighted Keys”, and one new song from our upcoming Octarine Sky release.
POP:
How much are the tickets and where can people get more info and tickets about this event?
Dyanne Potter:
Tickets are $50 ahead of time, $60 the day of the show. Info and tickets at http://www.njproghouse.com/
POP:
Can you tell us do you prefer to work in the studio or perform live and why?
Dyanne Potter:
Oh, I love both. The studio is so creative, and Jan is a magician when it comes to creating sounds and moods. He is such a great producer. Performing live is electric. I love being on stage and creating a moment with the audience. I am grateful to have the opportunity to do both.
POP:
Tell us how you work on new material do you compose the music first or write lyrics first?
Dyanne Potter:
It depends. Obviously, we have some instrumental numbers, so music first and last. The vocal music varies. Sometimes the lyrics are first, sometimes I take lyrics either I have already written, or our lyricist, Ronda Dubiel sends me, and put them to a musical idea. I write the basic composition and then hand it over to Jan. He arranges it, adds the bass, plus any other instruments he hears.
POP:
What inspires you to compose a piece of music?
Dyanne Potter:
Sometimes I just hear things. I usually hear something and then go to the piano and try to figure out what it is. I am inspired by nature, by Beauty, by life, by living. I try to open my ears.
POP:
Do you collaborate with others during the writing process of your music?
Dyanne Potter:
Jan definitely contributes to everything we put out. As I mentioned, Ronda Dubiel, regularly writes lyrics for us. And in Octarine Sky, Simon and Guthrie’s amazing musical contributions certainly shaped the compositions.
POP:
If an up-and-coming musician approached you and asked if you give them advice on how to become a better musician what would you say?
Dyanne Potter:
Practice. Perform. Prepare and then go out and just do it. One will never be perfect, so no sense in waiting for perfection to arrive before putting something out. Be courageous. Follow your vision. Don’t listen to negativity. Keep doing it. Honor yourself and the community of people who support you.
POP:
What is the meaning of success to you and has it changed over the years
Dyanne Potter:
Yes, the meaning of success has definitely changed for me over the years. I am so lucky to have the chance to create the music I hear and compose with amazing musicians. For me, that is success. Of course, if we were to ever make enormous amounts of money doing it, I might want to define success that way, too!!
POP:
What’s next, are you working on a new album?
Dyanne Potter:
Yes! Potter’s Daughter will soon be releasing an EP called Weighted Keys. This will only be featuring Jan and I. Included will be a piano rendition of the beautiful song, “Catherine, by Tom Kelly. The other two songs are a surprise!! We are so honored to feature artwork by the talented artist, Joe Ganech, on the cover. I love the combination of music and art. We are releasing it on Melodic Revolution Records. We have enjoyed the honor of working with Nick Katona and MRR since 2018.
POP:
Where can people learn more about you?
Dyanne Potter:
We are very active on social media, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. We also have websites for both bands, plus Bandcamp pages for both bands.
Potter’s Daughter:
https://pottersdaughterband.com/
Octarine Sky:
https://octarinesky.com/
POP: Where can people purchase your music?
Dyanne Potter:
The best place is probably Bandcamp. You can find everything there.
Potter’s Daughter:
https://officialpottersdaughter.bandcamp.com/
Octarine Sky:
https://octarinesky.bandcamp.com/releases
POP:
Are any other tour dates in the works?
Not yet. I recently moved to the midwest, so we are hoping to perform in Chicago and Milwaukee very soon.
POP would like to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to answer some questions for with Power of Prog
